Quit Picking on the Republicans
- Thread starter Kreskin
- Start date
You're an idiot. There is nothing Christian about the self proclaimed religious right wing Christian. They are no different than radical Islam, only they use the US military to do their murder and mayhem.
Wow! Surprise, surprise. Another red from the moron who can't defend his stupidity so he pushes a button.
That drain bamage is showing again and there is all this hatred consuming your soul.
Do you want your energy legacy you chucked into the ethereal plain one of negativity?
4 out of 10 is a far cry from "Religious Right" being dominant.
There are Chaplains doing Church of Satan, Santeria, Voodoo, Dirt Worshipping Injun services and everything else under the Sun
Why the US Military Wants Fewer Generic Christians
Department of Defense now recognizes 216 religions.
KATE SHELLNUTT
MAY 30, 2017 2:06 PM
re going to have to get more specific than that.
The general categories of “Protestant, no denominational preference” and “Protestant, other churches” have been removed from the Department of Defense (DoD) list of recognized religions as the US military seeks out more detailed designations for its 1.3 million service members.
This spring, the DoD doubled the religious identities that military personnel can declare on official paperwork and dog tags. The list now totals 216 different affiliations [full list below].
About 150 of them are Protestant groups, with the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) remaining the most popular individual denomination in the Armed Forces.
Evangelicals without denominational ties can choose from options including Reformed churches, the National Association of Evangelicals, Evangelical Church Alliance, “evangelical churches, other,” and “Christian, no denominational preference.”
The military is also prompting the “nones” to narrow down their beliefs. The religiously unaffiliated are an increasingly significant demographic in the US military, making up between 20 percent to 25 percent of the force. As CT reported, the number of atheists in uniform surpassed the number of Southern Baptists in 2014.
The new list nixes not applicable and no religious preference—among one of the most popular affiliations among service members— and replaces them with a litany of designations. In addition to agnostic and atheist, soldiers can now mark no religion, no preference, none provided, humanist, or heathen.
The government even changed the name of this expanded list from the “Faith Group Code” to the “Faith and Belief Code.”
The Armed Forces Chaplains Board made these changes to better measure the religious makeup of the military and thereby provide more targeted spiritual support for them. “Just being on the list is a signal of inclusion,” said Kim P. Hansen, sociologist and author of Military Chaplains and Religious Diversity.
The ability to “select their precise religious affiliation” is one way the military can honor the needs and preferences of those who serve, according to Chaplain Robert Allman, a strategic communications officer for the US Army chief of chaplains.
Ordained in the Presbyterian Church of America—now one of 13 Presbyterian groups recognized by the military—Allman said soldiers will occasionally bring up his particular denomination or theological tradition if they happen to also be Presbyterian, but he ultimately serves a range of Christians as well as non-Christians and non-believers.
“We continue to focus on providing religious support to everyone,” he said. “In times of need, people come to see a chaplain.”
About 3,000 chaplains serve across the Armed Forces, and for years, their makeup has not mirrored the military’s overall religious demographics, nor America’s.
Though nondenominational Christians, nones, and Catholics are the most popular religious groups in the military, Southern Baptists have at least twice as many chaplains as any other faith, with non-SBC Baptists and Catholics behind them. The military has no chaplains who identify as atheist, agnostic, or humanist.
“Many families describe having a faith denomination that is not commonly represented in the chaplain’s personal faith,” said Corie Weathers, a licensed professional counselor and wife to an Army chaplain. Depending on their tradition, “denominational identifiers matter significantly to some more than others…. [M]any families are able to adapt to chaplains, including various gifting and/or leadership styles, as they cycle through chapel assignments.”
The Military Religious Freedom Foundation, a watchdog group that has been critical of evangelicals, hopes the new codes will lead to different faiths being represented among the Chaplain Corps. “It’s a matter of seeing what happens,” said Chris Rodda, its senior research director. “My initial reaction is this is a very positive thing.”
The religious complaints go both ways. Some accuse the military of forcing service members and students at military schools to participate in Christian programs. Others, like the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod—now one of nine Lutheran designations—raise concerns about preserving their faith convictions in the “secularized military.”
Either way, “service members feel increasingly entitled to have their beliefs respected by those in positions of authority,” said Robert W. Tuttle, law and religion expert from George Washington University Law School.
Chaplains help coordinate religious accommodations (such as exceptions to the Army’s uniform policy that allow soldiers to don certain religious headwear); compliant meals; religious texts; church services; and, in the case of a casualty, respectful treatment of a service member’s body, according to his or her tradition. Typically, this involves saying prayers, anointing with oils, or performing last rites.
“If they can perform it, they do. If they cannot, they provide support by coordinating with another chaplain,” said Allman, who emphasized that no chaplain is asked to violate their tradition.
As the Army has grown more diverse—Sikhs were added to the list for the first time this year—the Chaplain Corps has had to expand its own religious literacy and understanding. It taps insight from “subject matter experts” in world religions to answer questions and advise.
Codifying religion into 216 categories reflects the inherent structure of the military. The DoD must try to fit the range of spiritual belief and practice into codes from A1 to ZZ. But standardization works better for some faiths than others.
Either way, “service members feel increasingly entitled to have their beliefs respected by those in positions of authority,” said Robert W. Tuttle, law and religion expert from George Washington University Law School.
Chaplains help coordinate religious accommodations (such as exceptions to the Army’s uniform policy that allow soldiers to don certain religious headwear); compliant meals; religious texts; church services; and, in the case of a casualty, respectful treatment of a service member’s body, according to his or her tradition. Typically, this involves saying prayers, anointing with oils, or performing last rites.
“If they can perform it, they do. If they cannot, they provide support by coordinating with another chaplain,” said Allman, who emphasized that no chaplain is asked to violate their tradition.
As the Army has grown more diverse—Sikhs were added to the list for the first time this year—the Chaplain Corps has had to expand its own religious literacy and understanding. It taps insight from “subject matter experts” in world religions to answer questions and advise.
Codifying religion into 216 categories reflects the inherent structure of the military. The DoD must try to fit the range of spiritual belief and practice into codes from A1 to ZZ. But standardization works better for some faiths than others.
With more structured traditions, chaplains can seek out certain religious texts or experts in the faith to advise on reasonable accommodations. But “what if you’re Wiccan?,” asked Hansen. “It’s very individualistic. What one Wiccan needs is not what the other needs. You could claim anything.”
And what if you’re evangelical? Nondenominational Christianity is on the rise; compared to 40 years ago, five times as many Protestants identify as nondenominational. They now make up about 4.9 percent of the US population—almost as much as Southern Baptists—according to the Pew Research Center. Nondenominational Christians represent a broader set of beliefs and traditions than a single denomination would (not to mention the increasingly complicated and confusing connotations of the evangelical label).
In that sense, nondenominational Christians and religious nones share a predicament: trying to fit into the structure of the military.
“The Roman Catholic priests, they come out of a hierarchical organization, so they know how to maneuver in that,” said Hansen, referring to the chaplains. “If you’re from an independent Baptist church, you’re not used to having a boss above you. It can be a disadvantage.”
Religious designations added in 2017:
Protestant Episcopal Church
Independent Baptist Bible Mission
Baptist Bible Fellowship
Ohio Yearly Meeting Of Friends
Kansas Yearly Meeting Of Friends
Anglican Orthodox Church
Messianic
Eckankar
American Council Christian Church
Heathen
Korean Evangelical Church Of America
Christian Crusade
Brethren In Christ Fellowship
Presbyterian Council For Chaplains And Military Personnel
American Baptist Convention
Baptist General Conference
Bible Presbyterian Church
Church Of The Spiral Tree
Southern Methodist Church
Reformed Churches
Grace Gospel Fellowship
American Baptist Association
Congregational Methodist Church
Conservative Baptist Association Of America
General Conference of the Swedenborgian Church
Association Of Free Lutheran Congregations
Armenian Apostolic
Fundamental Methodist Church Inc.
United Presbyterian Church In The USA
National Association Of Evangelicals
Community Of Christ
Other Religions
Antiochian Orthodox Christian
Independent Baptist Churches
United Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod
Methodist Episcopal Church
Evangelical Presbyterian Church
Baptist General Convention Of Texas
Methodist Protestant Church
Primitive Methodist Church
Evangelical Church Alliance
Christian Reformed Church
North American Baptist Conference
Bible Churches Chaplaincy
Elim Fellowship
Liberty Baptist Fellowship
Free Will Baptist, NC State Convention
Pentecostal Churches Of God Of America, Inc.
Reformed Judaism
United Christian Church
Ukrainian Evangelical Baptist Conference
Conservative Judaism
American Lutheran Church
Evangelical Methodist Church Of America
Evangelical Covenant Church In America
Troth
Greek Orthodox Church
Rosicrucianism
Association Of Evangelical Lutheran Churches
Church Of God
Dian Wi (Dianic Wicca)
Orthodox Presbyterian Church
Sacred Well Congregation
Full Gospel Pentecostal Association
Church Of Living God International
Orthodox Judaism
Druid
Presbyterian Churches
Deism
Church Of God In North America
Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod
Sikh
Reformed Church In The USA
Missionary Church
Independent Lutheran Churches
Evangelical Methodist Church
Elim Missionary Assemblies
General Conference Of The Brethren Church
American Baptist Churches
Missionary Church Association
Anglican Church in North America
Independent Assemblies Of God
Evangelical Friends Alliance
National Association Of Congregational Christian Church
Seventh Day Baptist General Conference
Evangelical Congregational Church
Chaplaincy Full Gospel Churches (CFGC)
Church Of The United Brethren Christ
Fellowship Of Grace Brethren Church
Communion Of Evangelical Episcopal Churches
Reformed Presbyterian Church, General Synod
Southwide Baptist Fellowship
Lutheran Church In America
Central Bible Church
Baptist Missionary Association Of America
Anglican Church In America
Gard Wi (Gardnerian Wicca)
World Baptist Fellowship
Lutheran Council In The USA
Evangelical Church Of North America
International Communion Of The Charismatic Episcopalian Church
Kingsway Fellowship
Shaman
Militant Fundamental Bible Church
Fundamental Bible Churches
Seax Wi (Seax Wicca)
Conservative Congregational Christian Conference
National Association Of Free Will Baptists
Full Gospel Fellowship Church/Ministries International
It isn't. Grow the f-ck up already.
Original Medicare (Part A and Part B) does not cover prescription drugs, so it does not cover Viagra. Medicare Part B currently covers pumps for erectile dysfunction under Durable Medical Equipment. This would leave a 20% cost for you, unless you have a Medigap plan that covers Part B's costs.
Fascistbook lied to you again.
Original Medicare (Part A and Part B) does not cover prescription drugs, so it does not cover Viagra. Medicare Part B currently covers pumps for erectile dysfunction under Durable Medical Equipment. This would leave a 20% cost for you, unless you have a Medigap plan that covers Part B's costs.
Something similar about Las Vegas Republicans Steve Wynn, Wayne Newton, and Sheldon Addison.
Animatronics.....
Old too.
Kasich
Trump Tower
And the guys can snert all you want, but they are the ones who are making change while you sit in your sarcasm and comfortable arm chairs trying to hold them back.
